CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The National Safety Council is expressing concern over the number of hot car deaths this year.
According to the council, 48 children have died from being left in hot cars since January, which is one death away from matching the all-time single-year high set in 2010.
Even as the temperature starts to drop heading into fall, the council warned temperatures inside vehicles can still reach life-threatening levels in minutes.
Last week, a four-year-old boy died in Orange County, Fla. after being left in a car outside a school. Hours later, a one-year-old girl in Seminole County, Fla. died after being found in the back of an SUV parked near a gas pump.
This year, South Carolina tops the list of states with the most hot car deaths at six.
In August, a two-year-old boy was found dead inside a hot car in Rock Hill. Investigators said Lamartray Adams Jr. was found unresponsive inside a car in the parking lot of an apartment complex on Glenarden Drive. The child died in the ambulance on the way to Piedmont Medical Center.
Following investigations, Rock Hill police determined Adams was inside the family's home when he opened the front door, walked out, got into the family car and accidentally locked himself inside.
Rock Hill police called it a "terrible accident", and no charges were filed.
The National Safety Council encouraged caregivers to “look before you lock” to ensure a child is not left in a hot car.